


Level Five

by cthulu_sun



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-01
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2019-01-23 01:08:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12495024
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cthulu_sun/pseuds/cthulu_sun
Summary: Keiji's always been a perfectionist, working himself too hard and judging himself too harshly.Luckily, his friends are always there to help him.





	Level Five

 

Keiji fails his Level 5 exam.

While this wouldn't normally be a problem, he's become quite attached to his Rider, and Bokuto has inevitably passed, because when he's actually focused he's  _amazing._ Which means Keiji has to attend the Pairing ceremony, just in case they found someone better than him to handle Bokuto. (Keiji really doesn't know why he's so worried, since the chances of  _that_ happening are next to none).

His name is one of the first called, and he stands on shaking legs, searching for Bokuto's easily-identifiable hair in the crowd of Riders; he doesn't find it, and his gaze instead settles on someone with hair spiked in multiple directions, with a small amount hanging over one eye, who gives him a lazy smile. Keiji flushes and looks away quickly, eyes suddenly meeting Bokuto's, filling him with a sense of relief.

"Akaashi Keiji, Level 4, will be continuing this year with Bokuto Koutarou, Level 5. As the two of you are at different levels, you will need to speak to your respective instructors about training times once you leave this room."

Keiji, still trembling slightly, exits as quickly as possible, smiling when he hears Bokuto's screech of triumph behind him.

"Hey hey hey Akaashi! Didn't I say they'd keep us together?"

"You did, Bokuto-san. Have they given you a new ribbon yet?"

In answer, he shows Keiji his wrist; tied around it is a new red ribbon, instead of the previous green one. While Keiji is proud of his partner, he can't help the feeling of slight envy as he thinks of his own old, dirty, green ribbon, which won't be replaced until he passes the exam.

Bokuto drags him towards the training grounds, insisting that they need to get in the air, despite his protests that he needs to see his instructor first. Truthfully, he's missed flying with Bokuto, and they probably won't get in too much trouble for being late, and the ceremony doesn't officially end for another half an hour, anyway.

He lets himself be pulled out of the building and into an empty arena, where Bokuto stares at him expectantly. Keiji rolls his eyes, but begins Shifting; his feathers always come in first, followed by his wings, until eventually he stands as a small great eagle, almost fully grown.

Bokuto settles himself between Keiji's wings without a seat, which is reckless and  _stupid_ but apparently better than using one, and Bokuto's always been ridiculously stubborn. After the signal, (usually a loud of yell of something unintelligible, followed by his name), Keiji takes off, flying a few circles around the arena before heading into a Level 5 course, which his partner patiently guides him through.

"Akaashi," Bokuto begins, when they're leisurely flying through a Level One, "What happened?"

Keiji knows what he's talking about. He  _should_ have passed, because he can do the course easily with Bokuto there.

But in the exam, Bokuto  _wasn't_ there. And somehow Keiji couldn't make it on his own, had fallen at the very first obstacle; the shame of it chokes him, but he forces himself to speak.

"It seems we need to practice more separately, Bokuto-san. I am too dependent on your help."

"Huh? What's that got to do with your exam?"

Keiji was hoping to avoid this, because Bokuto will be  _insufferable_ once he knows. Lying is not a good idea, though, so Keiji prepares himself for the inevitable inflation of Bokuto's head and answers.

"I was unable to complete the course without your assistance."

Bokuto's excited shriek, once he realises the implications of Keiji's statement, is still ringing in his ears long after they land and he's back in human form.

//

They end up being two hours late for their meeting with the instructors.

Part of those two hours was Bokuto trying to make Keiji 'feel better', which, while unnecessary, was strongly appreciated, and the rest they had spent discussing ways to train separately in preparation for Keiji's retake in four months' time. 

Fortunately, they don't get too much of a scolding, because the instructors are always wary of Bokuto's buoyancy when it comes to his mood. Still, Keiji's instructor is quick to berate him for failing, which is exceedingly unpleasant.

"We're gonna train separately for now," he hears Bokuto say next to him, and both instructors immediately stare at the two of them in confusion.

"I rely on Bokuto-san too much," Keiji clarifies. "He can't take the exam with me, so I need to practice flying the course alone."

His instructor bombards him with questions about why he found it difficult without a Rider, but he doesn't  _know,_ all he knows is he approached the first obstacle, didn't feel a signal, and panicked, meaning he needs to get used to flying alone again.

"You can do that on your own. Competitions start in a fortnight, and we need both of you in top form."

Keiji nods, taking the timetable handed to him without resistance, elbowing Bokuto in the side so he doesn't protest. He elbows Bokuto again to ask for a pencil, and he notes the arenas that will be free when he is.

"Hey hey hey Akaashi," Bokuto says, peering over his shoulder, "What are you doing?"

"Preparing for solo practice, Bokuto-san."

Bokuto seems to be happy with that answer, so Keiji goes back to his timetable, but a pointed glare from his instructor stops him.

"As you are still unable to enter Level 5 competitions, we'll be working on timing until Akaashi can pass his exam," Bokuto's instructor says, and Keiji had not expected it to  _hurt_ this much; perhaps sensing his lack of responsiveness, Bokuto pulls a face at him, startling a laugh out of him.

One of the instructors sighs. Keiji obediently tries to stop the laughter, but that succeeds in amusing Bokuto, and the two of them end up collapsing on the floor, for no real reason.

"What the hell has gotten in to you? Akaashi, Shift. We don't have time for this."

Keiji scrambles to his feet and begins the process, while Bokuto is sent to find a seat, since they'd forgotten to bring one with them. He returns with something that looks pathetically weak, but Keiji allows him to attach it anyway, because  _something_ is at least better than nothing.

When they're both ready, they fly through a Level Four course seven times, trying to improve their timing as much as possible; Keiji thinks they can't get a lot faster, and his wings are aching by the time they're told their performance is satisfactory.

"Good work today, Bokuto-san," Keiji says when they land.

"You too, Akaashi! And don't worry so much, okay?"

"I'll try."

"Akaashi," Bokuto whines, drawing out the syllables of name, "Stop being so negative! I know I'm so awesome you can't fly without me -"

"That is  _not_ what I said -"

"But you're the best, and I'll be able to come to your exam with you next time," Bokuto finishes, and strangely, Keiji does feel a little better.

"I would like that."

Bokuto beams at him, and they make their way to the canteen together, Bokuto chattering away, Keiji mostly listening.

(It's easier than Keiji thought it would be, with the bitterness of his failure slowing fading into the back of his mind).

//

He and Bokuto are sharing a room with Konoha and Komi this year, and while he doesn't mind the familiar faces, they're too invested in knowing about every aspect of his life. Like why he's going to an arena outside of training hours. 

"You and Bokuto don't need  _more_ practice, you've already beaten us at least six times," Komi complains.

"Bokuto-san will not be with me," Keiji says stiffly, taking advantage of the shock this causes and practically running out the door.

He doesn't find an arena straight away, instead Shifting in the area set aside for casual flying. It's been a long time since he's flown for anything other than competitions or exams, and as he hovers in the air, letting the wind push him along, he realizes he's  _missed_ this.

Eventually, though, Keiji lands in an empty arena, Shifting back into human form to prepare a standard Level 5 course.

"Hey," somebody says from behind him, and he screams. The stranger bursts into loud, obnoxious laughter. "Calm down, I'm not gonna hurt you."

Keiji turns around, finding himself face-to-face with a very slightly familiar person, whose hairstyle choices still leave much to be desired.

"How do you even get your hair like that?" He blurts, before he can stop himself, and immediately burns with mortification. The stranger looks surprised, and then he's laughing again, and Keiji kind of wants to sink into the floor and never return.

"I think it's the way I sleep. I don't really have time to do my hair in the morning."

He has a nice voice, although Keiji would rather give up flying completely than admit he finds this person attractive - at least, until he smiles a little awkwardly at him, and Keiji blushes profusely. (In his defence, it's getting late, and he is pretty tired).

"One should always take the time to look presentable," Keiji says, going back to setting up the course. He doesn't expect the stranger to stay, but to Keiji's surprise he helps with building obstacles high enough to be reached when flying.

"Is this a Five? From the way you were flying earlier I was sure you were a Six - I'm Kuroo by the way. Kuroo Tetsurou."

Well, it seems the stranger ( _Kuroo_ ) likes to talk just as much as Bokuto does, and also seems content with him just listening.

"I'm Akaashi," he says, when Kuroo gives him a questioning look.

" _Bokuto's_ Akaashi?"

"Bokuto-san and I are partners, yes." 

Kuroo places the last barrier of the course and turns to Keiji with an unreadable expression on his face, which Keiji ignores, Shifting when he's certain that Kuroo is far enough away. 

When he's in the air he focuses on the course, trying to remember how Bokuto guides him; he manages to clear the first obstacle, but tumbles headfirst into the second one and falls. He briefly registers accidentally Shifting in mid air and then strong arms are holding him, helping him reach the ground.

"That's dangerous," Kuroo says quietly. He's pulled away from Keiji but is standing close - maybe a little too close for someone he's just met. Keiji closes his eyes, thinking. Accidental Shifting does not happen often for him, but it used to.

"Maybe I'm still stressed," Keiji wonders aloud, staring at the obstacle he's just broken.

"I think you should leave it for today. We should be getting inside anyway, the arenas close soon."

Kuroo walks back with him in silence. Strangely, it's not an uncomfortable silence, and when Kuroo leaves with a muttered ' _Be careful, okay?'_ Keiji manages to smile and agree with little effort.

//

Bokuto is far too loud in the mornings. It's a fact Keiji has had to live with for a year now, and his over-abundance of energy  _very_ unsuited to the morning is something Keiji is still not prepared for.

"Bokuto-san please be quiet," he says, although he hardly expects Bokuto to listen to him. In fact, the singing coming from the bathroom seems to grow even louder in response. Keiji finishes getting ready while thinking of various ways to murder Bokuto by the end of the day, which makes him feel slightly better about the unnecessary noise.

"We have a competition today, Akaashi!" Bokuto uses as an excuse, after Keiji has started reciting torture methods out loud. Konoha glares at both of them, and slides his headphones on with a disgusted expression. Keiji can't really bring himself to care.

Breakfast is a silent, tense affair, with Bokuto sulking on one side of him and Oikawa sulking on the other, which most likely means they've had a fight, again. Probably a public one, given that nobody seems to be very surprised; Iwaizumi shrugs and settles next to Oikawa, quickly striking up conversation with somebody Keiji doesn't across the table, and Daichi takes one look at them, clearly decides he's not ready to deal with both Bokuto and Oikawa in their current state, and drags Suga to another table. Kuroo sits on the other side of Bokuto, waving at Keiji and attempting to lift Bokuto's spirits.

"Hey, Akaashi," he says, wearing the kind of grin that Keiji has begun to associate with  _trouble_ whenever he sees it on Bokuto, "Would you say Oikawa is better at guiding than your Rider?"

Keiji has had Oikawa as a Rider in the past, and while he's undoubtedly good, there is a reason it was in the past. And while he doesn't want to deal with Oikawa's incessant whining he needs Bokuto to be his usual self during the competition.

"Oikawa-san does not give adequate signals," he settles on, so that Bokuto perks up a little and Oikawa squawks with indignation. Iwaizumi nods in apparent agreement, resulting in a declaration by Oikawa that he's going to dissolve their Pairing. (Since Oikawa threatens this on a daily basis, and has not yet gone through with it, Iwaizumi raises an eyebrow and continues eating).

Bokuto, peering at the clock, springs up from his chair, looking like he does when his mother visits and he hasn't had time to tidy their room. He grabs Keiji's arm to pull him along, muttering something about being late.

"Competition!" Keiji yells as an explanation, and then Bokuto's forcing him into a run and they're sprinting over to the biggest arena the school owns, Keiji Shifting midway there, because flying's quicker than running. He picks Bokuto up with his claws, and somehow they manage to be in time to watch the first Pair start the course. 

"Is it just me, or do they look really slow?" Bokuto asks, when the seventh Pair have flown around the course and nobody is even close to the sort of time he and Keiji can make when they're at their best.

When his name is called alongside Bokuto's, Keiji approaches the course quickly, easily; Bokuto fixes a seat between his wings and leaps straight into it. When they're given the start signal, Keiji shoots past the first obstacle in no time at all, and Bokuto guides him carefully through the rest. At one point, he sees Kuroo in the stands, waving, and smiles to himself; Bokuto waves back, which almost trips him up, but thankfully he's gotten used to Bokuto doing careless things while in the air.

They win.

It's over too soon.

Later, Keiji glares at the green ribbon of his new medal, the bright feeling of winning fading into bitterness when he remembers that it could have been red had he passed his exam like he was supposed to.

//

Kuroo shows up at his practice, which he's been doing for the past two weeks.

"Akaashi! I've come to help you!"

"Kuroo-san, the whole point of this is so that I get through the course without help," Keiji tells, like he does every time, although it's surprisingly nice to hear encouragement from below while he's flying.

He managed to reach the fifth obstacle before falling this time, which is halfway, so he decided that's enough and lands next to Kuroo.

"I saw you. At the competition," he says, and Kuroo's face lights up.

"I was cheering you on! And you won, so clearly it worked."

"Yeah..." Keiji says, remembering the medal shoved into a drawer so that he doesn't have to look at it. Fortunately, Kuroo doesn't pry, instead moving on to talking about Oikawa and Bokuto's argument that hasn't been resolved yet. Keiji tunes most of it out while he's putting equipment away, but he starts listening again just as Kuroo says, "Go on a date with me?" and nearly falls over.

"What? I don't know you well enough for that, Kuroo-san."

Kuroo laughs, loud and uproarious.

"Fair enough. Think about it, though, please?"

Keiji nods, and goes back to his room deep in thought. Bokuto asks him how practice went, but at his complete lack of response switches to pestering him about why he looks so angry.

Keiji does not want to tell him about Kuroo, especially when there are other people with them. Still, he has to talk to  _someone,_ and the only person he can think of who won't make fun of him is someone he's not particularly close to.

"Bokuto-san," he says, "Do you know where I might be able to find Suga?" 

//

Suga radiates kindness and contentment, so Keiji feels safe in asking about what he should do. He discovers, when he's complaining about how unfairly attractive Kuroo is, that all he needed was somebody to talk this through with, and Suga is patient and lets him ramble as much as he wants.

He also realizes that he does want to get to know Kuroo in a romantic context, even if it's kind of soon. This realization occurs in the middle of a sentence, and when he breaks off in surprise Suga smiles at him like he  _knows._

"Kuroo's with Kenma and Daichi in arena six," he offers with a laugh, and Keiji is seized with sudden panic at the thought of having to give his answer with somebody else there. Suga ends up agreeing to go with him, and he approached the three in arena six with hopefully more confidence on the outside than he does on the inside.

Keiji recognises Kuroo's Shifter, who must be Kenma, but has never spoken to him; it's Kenma who sees him first, and he turns Kuroo so that he's facing Keiji.

"Kuroo-san, I have been thinking," he begins, voice shaking as everyone is now staring at him, "And I would like to go on a date with you."

For a few moments, there's silence, and then Kenma snorts. "I told you, Kuro."

Kuroo smiles, even as Keiji's face  _burns._

"Can I get a hug, or is that moving a bit fast for you, Akaashi?"

In answer, Keiji gingerly hugs Kuroo, and the others quietly leave, so that it's just the two of them.

"Saturday work for you?" Kuroo asks, right next to Keiji's ear.

Keiji frowns. "The whole day?" 

Kuroo pulls away to place a palm over his heart, pouting. "You don't want to spend the whole day with me?"

"That's not what I meant. And yes, probably."

(Kuroo punches the air and shouts something Keiji can't hear. It makes him laugh, though).

//

"Artistic flying?" Keiji asks, reading the sign on top of the building Kuroo's brought him to. Kuroo looks nervous, eyes flitting between Keiji and the floor.

"I thought you might be good at it, with the way you fly," he says.

Kuroo's right; he  _is_ good at it, and he's enjoying learning new things so much that he manages to forget about the looming threat of his exam entirely. He finds himself smiling for no particular reason, and any lingering doubt he had about agreeing to do this is banished by Kuroo somehow helping him up every time he falls, and gently persuading him to try again every time he doesn't quite get it right.

//

Weeks fly by, and when Keiji manages to complete a Level 5 course by himself all his friends are there, cheering and applauding, praising him until he's begging them to stop. He doesn't dread his exam anymore; he anticipates it, ready to pass, ready to  _fly._

Kuroo kisses him, later, when they're alone in his room, and he's kissed people before but it's never been with such a feeling of satisfaction, such a feeling of victory.

//

Keiji glances at the stands, hardly believing his eyes. Kuroo had said he'd try to get as many as possible to come, but that hadn't prepared him for the sight of  _Ushijima_ giving him a small wave when prompted by Oikawa. He Shifts, feeling oddly impatient, and he's off as soon as he's told he can start.

He clears the first obstacle, executes a close turn and clears the second; he drops a few points by knocking into the fifth but he stays upright, continuing until he's finally, finally landing at the finish line in human form, with Bokuto already running towards him. They dismiss him with a simple ' _pass_ ', and Bokuto flings his arms around him, lifting him off the ground in excitement.

"Bokuto-san, while I appreciate your happiness at my accomplishment, please put me down."

His feet find solid ground only to lose it again when Kuroo picks him up and spins hin round and round, until he's so dizzy he can't see. His friends swarm around him, offering their congratulations. Somebody manages to tear the green ribbon off his wrist, and Keiji can't muster up enough energy to yell at them for it. He feels tired, and slumps in Kuroo's arms, who decides to scoop his legs up so he's being carried bridal style. He doesn't even have the energy to care, at this point, and lets Kuroo carry him away without protesting.

"You ok?" Kuroo asks, carefully lowering him down onto his bed. Keiji smiles at him, feeling like the life's been sucked out of him but still happy, elated.

"I did it," he says, the thought properly sinking in for the first time. "I  _passed._ "

//

A week later, Kuroo ties a red ribbon around his wrist, despite Keiji's assurance that he can do it himself.

"We match, Akaashi!" Bokuto exclaims, bumping the side of his wrist against Keiji's.

"We do, Bokuto-san."

(They win their first Level 5 competition. Kuroo insists they cheated. Keiji hangs his medal on the wall, and feels something in him ease, something in him slip away. It is calm. It is gone).


End file.
